P3: A Different Journey
by Rwanime442
Summary: After ten years, Nagito Ishikawa has come back to Iwatodai to investigate his parents' death. While back in his hometown, he'll attend school, awaken his Persona and fall in love with a certain ice empress. Warning: OC protagonist. OCxMitsuru, eventual JunpeixChidori
1. Chapter 1

P3: Nagito's Journey

**A/N:**

**Rwanime442 is back with a new story! Persona 3: Nagito's Journey. This is a P3 novelization with an OC Protagonist. I couldn't have done this without the help of Immortal Thunder. Before I start the story, I will show you a bio of the MC. As I always say; I don't mind criticism, but if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything. If you don't like it, just don't read it.**

Nagito Ishikawa

Age: 17

Birthday: December 17

Birthplace: Iwatodai City, Japan

Height: 5,5

Weight: 123 LBS

Eyes: brown, wears glasses (he takes them off when he's in battle)

Hair: long black hair in a ponytail

Personality: shy, friendly, but has a strong since of justice

Likes: friendship, manga, Risette

Dislikes: bullies, Shadows, men that are disrespectful to women

**And now...The story.**

**4/7: Nighttime, train headed to Iwatodai**

In the dead of the night, the train was completely empty except for a single person. It was a teenage boy. He had long, black hair in a ponytail, brown eyes, and wearing glasses. His name was Nagito Ishikawa, 17 years old. He was returning to Iwatodai as a high school student. He was born in Iwatodai, though he hasn't visited this city in a long time. Ten years ago, He and his parents were going on a trip when they were attacked on the Moonlight Bridge. He survived, but his parents were not so lucky. They were killed by some mysterious creature. That was all he really could remember. Everything else that happened that fateful night was a blank. Ever since then, he has been transferred from school to school, town to town, relative to relative. Every midnight since the incident, he has experienced a horrible hour where electronics stop working, water turns to blood, and people turn into coffins. After several years, he got used to it. He had never told anyone because he knew they would not believe him. He never made any friends so he was real shy around people, he was also ignored and abused by his relatives. His last home was with his aunt and uncle in the Adachi district of Tokyo. He was sent away back to his hometown and enrolled in Gekkoukan High. He could not have been happier to be away from such awful people as his aunt and uncle. This could also be his chance to investigate what exactly happened to him and his parents ten years ago.

"Due to a malfunction in the switching system, the rail schedule has been greatly altered. The next stop is Iwatodai, Iwatodai." The voice on the intercom spoke.

The train finally stopped at its destination and Nagito got off the train. He took his phone out of his pocket to see how late it was. It was 11:59 PM.

_I can't believe how late it is. It's almost midnight. _He thought to himself.

As soon as he thought that, his phone and his MP3 went dead, and the people around him turned into coffins.

"I better get to the dorm. I may be used to this, but it still scares me every time." He said out loud.

He hated being outside when that horrible time would happen. He always felt that something was going to jump out at him at anytime. Fortunately, the place he needed to be was a just a short walk from the station. After a few minutes of walking the streets, he came across a dormitory. He looked at the pamplet in his hand and noticed that the picture on it matched the building he was in front of. He quickly walked over to the entrance and went inside. As soon as he walked inside, relief washed over him.

"Good evening." A voice that came out of nowhere said, which nearly made Nagito jump out of his skin. He turned left to see a boy standing behind the reception desk. He looked like an eight year boy. He had short black hair and blue eyes. He was wearing what looked like an old prison outfit. He had an

ominous smile on his face. Nagito was surprised to see another person active during that hour, but Nagito felt that this wasn't a normal boy.

"W-W-Who are you?" Nagito asked the boy nervously.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to harm you." The boy said with a mysterious voice.

"Now, if you wish to continue, please sign your name here." The boy said, pointing at a binder on the desk. "Don't worry, it's a contract. All it says is that you have take responsibility for your actions, you know, the usual stuff."

Nagito opened the binder. A dotted line was below the words, 'I chooseth this faith of mine own free will'. He did what he was told and signed his name on the dotted line and closed the binder.

The boy then picked up the binder and it disappeared from his hand. "Time delivers us all to the same end. Wishing won't make it go away. And so it begins." The boy said with nonsensical and ominous words and disappeared into the darkness.

_Did I imagine that? It sure felt real. _Nagito thought to himself.

"Who's there?!" A voice screamed from the down the hallway, once again making Nagito nearly jump out of his skin. He turned around to see a girl around his age. She was wearing a pink cardigan, a short skirt, knee high socks and brown loafers. She had short brown hair and brown eyes. She seemed to have a panicked look on her face.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude." He said, trying to calm her down, but it fell on deaf ears as she reached for the gun on the holster on her leg.

"W-W-W-W-Wait! D-D-D-Don't shoot!" Nagito panicked, running for cover behind a chair in the lounge.

"Takeba, wait!" A voice called from behind the girl. She turned around to see a girl with long red hair and red eyes. She was wearing a ruffled blouse and knee high boots.

That's when the lights came back on his MP3 came back on blasting out a song by Risette.

"It's okay to come out now." The voice belonging to redhead said.

"O-Okay..." Nagito responded, standing back up. When he did, he got a glance of the redhead girl.

_S-She's so beautiful. _Nagito thought to himself, trying not to blush at her beauty.

"I didn't think you would arrive so late. My name is Mitsuru Kirijo, I'm a resident of this dorm." The redhead introduced herself.

"Who's he?" The brunette asked.

"This is Nagito Ishikawa, he'll be staying for now." Misturu said.

"Is it really okay for him to be here?" The brunette questioned.

"We'll see." Misturu said with a small smile on her face. "This is Yukari Takeba. She'll be a junior tomorrow, just like you." The redhead said.

"That's me. I'm sorry for scaring you, Nagito-kun." Yukari said in an apologetic voice.

"I-It's okay. Why do you guys have guns?" He asked.

"Huh? I-It's a hobby." Yukari answered nervously.

"A hobby?" Nagito asked.

"What she means to say is that these are used for protection. They're not real guns." Mitsuru said.

"You must be exhausted. Takeba, go get some rest. Ishikawa, I'll show you your room. Follow me."

Mitsuru went upstairs and Nagito followed her to the end of the hallway. "This is your room. Here's your key." She said, handing him the key to the room. "I ask that you please don't lose it." The way she said it made it sound like someone lost their key, there would be dire concequences.

"Before I go, do have any questions you'd like to ask?"

"N-No, I'm good." He said.

"Very well then. Good night, Ishikawa." She said as she walked away.

"Y-Yeah, 'night." He said. He unlocked the door with his key and entered the room. All of his things were already there, but he was too tired to unpack. He changed into his Pjs and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Chapter 1 end.

**A/N: That's all for now. Next time, Nagito gets visited by our favorite long-nosed man. I hope you enjoy it.**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**Setting: unknown, unknown time**

When Nagito opened his eyes, he found himself sitting in a strange room. It looked like the inside of a giant elevator. He checked his surroundings to find he wasn't alone. There were two people in front of him. One was a girl with short silver hair and yellow eyes. She was wearing some kind of strange bell hop outfit. The other was an old man in a black suit. His most distuingishing features were his bloodshot eyes and incredibly long nose. He was also grinning, which made Nagito nervous.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room, my dear young man." The man said with a creepy voice.

"W-Who are you?" Nagito asked.

"It's been years since we had a new guest." The man said. "My name is Igor, it is a pleasure to make your aqquaintance. This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. Only those who have the contract may enter."

"My name is Elizabeth, I am Igor's assisstant, pleased to meet you." The girl named Elizabeth introduced herself.

"What are you talking about?" Nagito asked.

Igor waved his hand and a familiar looking binder appeared on the small table between them.

"That's the contract?" He asked.

"Indeed. You haved signed it, and are now a guest in the Velvet Room. You will soon awaken to our power, and you will need my help. There is but one price to pay for this; You must abide by the contract, and take responsibility for all decisions you make." Igor said.

"My power? Responsibility? What's going on?" Nagito asked.

"Hold on to this." Igor waved his hand again, and a blue key appeared in Nagito's hand. "Until then, farewell."

"Hold on, wait-" Before Nagito could say anything, his vision started to fade.

**Setting: April 8, Nagito's room, early morning**

When his vision returned, he found himself lying in his bed. "What a crazy dream..." He muttered. Was he dreaming? It had to be a dream. If it was a dream, why did it feel so real? He got up and brushed his teeth. He was about change out of his pjs until he felt something in his pocket.

"That's strange, I don't remember putting anything in these pockets." Nagito pulled it out to see it was the same key that Igor gave to him in his dream. "W-What?" What's this doing here? You mean, it wasn't a dream?" He asked himself. He didn't have time to think about, because school started in an hour. He quickly changed out of his pjs and put on his Gekkoukan High uniform. Just as he was about to open the door, he heard someone knocking on it. "Hey, it's Yukari, can you open the door?"

"I'm coming." He said, opening the door.

"Good morning!" Yukari said with a cheerful smile.

"Mornin'." Nagito responded with a smile of his own.

"Mitsuru-senpai asked me to take you to school. Are you ready?"

"Y-Yeah..." He responded. He didn't know why, but he was actually hoping to go to school together with Mitsuru.

It only took them a couple of minutes for them to get to the monorail.

"Is this monorail the only way to get to school?" Nagito asked.

"Yeah, this monorail is called Anehazuru, and I love riding it everyday. Every time you look out the window, it looks you're gliding over the sea." She said.

When he looked out the window, he was amazed by the view. The ocean was crystal clear and the sun amplified its beauty. "Wow..."

"It's nice, isn't it?" Yukari asked.

"Yeah. I lived here before, I don't remember it looking like this." He said.

"You have?" She asked.

"Uh-huh, it was a long time ago, though. Back then, there was no Port Island."

"I see..." She said/

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the gates of Gekkoukan High School.

"Welcome to Gekkoukan High School, I hope you like it here."

Nagito was overwhelmed by the size of the school. It was almost the size of a town. The last school he attended was small compared to the massive school he was standing in front of.

As Nagito was walking beside Yukari, he saw other students staring and whispering with each other.

_Rumors about me and Yukari going out are going to start aren't they? _He thought to himself.

As soon as they entered the building, they stopped at the the shoe lockers.

"And that concludes the tour. Any questions?" The brunette asked.

"No, I'm good, thanks, Yukari-chan." He said.

"Hey, don't tell anyone about what you saw last night." Yukari said in a hushed tone.

_She must be talking about that hour. _Nagito thought to himself.

"I won't. Even if I told someone, I'd doubt they'd believe me." He said with a frown.

"Okay. Well, I've got something to do. If you want to know what class you're in, go to the faculty office. It's the hallway on the left. The faculty office is the first door you see."

"Thanks." He said.

"Bye."

After saying goodbye to Yukari, Nagito headed for the faculty office. When he entered, he saw a woman with black eyes and brown hair styled similar to Yukari's.

"Excuse me." He said, trying to get her attention.

"Oh, you must be the new transfer student." She said, getting out of her desk and walking up to him. "Nagito Ishikawa. 11Th grade, correct?"

"Yes, maam."

"Let's see... You've lived in a lot of places, haven't you?" She said, reading his student record. "1999, ten years ago, you're parents...*gasp* I'm sorry, I didn't read this beforehand." She said with an apologetic voice.

"N-No, it's okay." He said.

"I'm Isako Toriumi, you're in 2-F, that's my class. The opening ceremony is starting soon, follow me." She said.

Nagito was struggling to stay awake during the opening ceremony. The principal had the most boring speech in the history of speeches. Just he was about to nod off, a student from behind him tapped his shoulder.

"Hey, I saw you come to school this morning with Yukari." The student said.

_Just as I thought... _He thought to himself.

"I was wondering, do you know if she has a boyfriend?" He asked.

"I don't know." Nagito answered honestly. He thought Yukari was a nice person to be around, but he didn't have those kinds of feelings toward her.

"I see. I'd thought you might know. So, how well do know her?" He asked.

"I hear talking. I believe it's someone in Ms. Toriumi's class." A teacher said.

"Shhh! Quiet. You're going to get me in trouble." She said to the student.

After the first day of school, Nagito was about to leave until someone tapped his shoulder, making him nearly jump out of his skin.

"'Sup dude?"

"H-Hello..." Nagito said nervously.

"What's up with you? You like a deer caught in headlights."

"Y-You just startled me is all."

"Sorry about that." He said with a goofy grin.

"I-It's okay, um... Who are you?"

"Me? I'm Junpei Iori, nice to meet ya. I transferred here when I was in 8th grade. I know what it's like being the new kid, so I thought I'd say high. See what a nice guy I am?"

"I'm Nagito Ishikawa, nice to meet you, too, Junpei-kun." Even though he startled him, Nagito really appreciated Junpei being friendly to him. No one ever came up to greet him when he was a new student, he was mostly bullied for being the new guy.

"What's up, Yuka-tan?" Junpei said to Yukari as she walked over to the two.

"At it again, huh? I swear, you'll talk to anyone who will listen. Did you ever think you might be bothering someone?" She said.

"H-Hey! I was just trying to be friendly!" Junpei retorted.

"He wasn't bothering me." Nagito said.

"If you say so. Looks like we're in the same class together." She said with a smile.

"I know." Nagito said.

"Funny, huh?"

" Are you forgetting I'm in this class, too? By the way, I heard you two were walking to school together this morning. What's up with that? Come on, give me the dirt." Junpei said with his goofy grin.

"What?! Not you too, Junpei! Why people even talking about it? Now you have me worried." She said with wide eyes. She then turned to Nagito. "You didn't tell anyone about you know what, did you?"

"No."

"Good. Seriously, don't tell anyone about last night."

Junpei's eyes were wide as saucers. "Last night?"

"Hey, don't get the wrong idea!" She retorted. "Listen! We just live in the same dorm. I met him last night. There's absolutely nothing going on between us. I got stuff to do for archery club. You better not start spreading rumors, Junpei." She then walked out of the classroom.

"What's her deal? It's not like anyone takes rumors seriously anyway. She's so paranoid." He then put his arm around Nagito's neck. "But, hey. It's your first day here and people are already talking about you. Believe it or not, she's actually pretty popular. You da man!" He then let go of Nagito. "This gonna be a fun year, I can feel it." He said with another goofy grin.

While leaving school, Junpei caught up with Nagito and offered to show him around Port Island. He showed him quite a few places. One of them was Paulownia Mall. He was impressed by everything they had there. The police station was there, as well as a night club. He also showed him around Port Island Station. Nagito thought it looked a lot nicer than Iwatodai Station.

After a few hours of walking around the town, it was getting dark. Nagito and Junpei said good bye to each other and went their seperate ways.

**Setting: Evening, Iwatodai dorm**

As soon as Nagito entered the dorm, he saw Yukari talking with an unfamiliar man in the lounge. He was wearing a tan suit. He had long brown hair and brown eyes with glasses.

"Oh! He's back." Yukari said.

"Hello there. Please, take a seat." The man said.

Nagito did as he said and took a seat on the couch beside Yukari. "Good evening. My name is Shuji Ikutsuki, I'm the chairman of the board of your school. Ikutsuki, hard prenounce isn't it? That's why I don't like introducing myself. Even I get tongue tied sometimes. So, do you have a question?" The man named Ikutsuki asked.

"Who else lives here? The only people I've seen here were Yukari and Mitsuru-senpai."

"There are only four students staying here. You, Yukari, Mitsuru, and a student named Akihiko Sanada. I hope you all get along." He said with a friendly smile. He didn't know why, but that smile made Nagito feel uneasy. "Do you have another question?"

"No, I'm good." Nagito said.

"Very well then. You must be tired from all the excitement. I hope you have a good night's sleep. Like they said, the early bird catches the bookworm. Please forget the bad pun." He said. He then walked down the hallway up the stairs.

**A few hours later, in another part of the dorm**

Yukari and Mitsuru were in the command room watching Nagito sleep on the monitor when Ikutsuki came in. "How is he?" He asked.

"He just fell asleep." Mitsuru said. "Mr. Chairman, do you think he's..."

"Let's just wait and see. It's almost the Dark Hour." As soon as he said that, the moon starting glowing a sickly green.

"Hm, he's still asleep." When the Dark Hour occurs, an ordinary human transmogrifies into a coffin, and is oblivious to all that occurs."

"That means..."

"As you seen, he's still asleep."

"Should we continue to monitor him for a few more days?" Mitsuru asked.

"Yes. Just in case. It's highly likely he may have The Potential."

"Yes, sir." Mitsuru responded.

Chapter 2 end

**A/N: How do you guys want me to post these chapters? A single day in a chapter, or multiple days in one. Please review and tell me. I don't mind doing either.**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**Setting: 4/9 After School, Gekkoukan High**

It was the second day of school at Gekkoukan High. Nagito was surprised how quiet his day at school was. He was bombarded with questions about him and Yukari being a couple and had to prevent Junpei from embarassing himself in class by giving him the right answer. But he wasn't bullied all day, which was fine by him. For the next few hours, he wandered around the town. He visited the Iwatodai strip mall and found it changed a lot of the last ten years. The Wild Duck Burger, the Octopia takoyaki stand, and the Bookworms book store was still there, there were a bunch of brand new buildings. They were higher up and could be accessed by a set of spiral stairs. There were two floors. The new places consisted of a sweets shop, a manga cafe, and a ramen restaurant.

_There was an awesome ramen stand back in Adachi. I wonder if this place has any good ramen, I'll have to check it out later... _Nagito thought to himself.

**Setting: 4/9 Evening, Dorm**

Nagito arrived to see Mitsuru on the couch reading a book. "Ah, welcome back, Ishikawa." She greeted, briefly taking her eyes of the book.

"H-Hello, Mitsuru-senpai..." He said while blushing.

"Since you're back, there's something I need to tell you." She said.

"W-What is it?" He asked nervously.

"A bunch of strange incidents have been happening as of late. I'm asking you not to go outside at night, it's too dangerous." She said in authorative voice.

"Y-Yes, I understand, Senpai." He responded.

"Your face is burning up. Are not feeling well?" She asked, this time with a concerned tone.

"I-I-I-I'm a-alright.. I-I'm still t-tired, so I-I'm going to bed. G-Good night!" He then bolted up the stairs to his room.

Yukari saw him bolting up the stairs with his flushed expression. _He has a crush on Senpai. That's cute. _She thought to herself.

**Setting: 4/9 Dark Hour, Dorm command room**

Mitsuru, Yukari, and Ikutsuki were in the command room watching Nagito sleep on the monitor.

"Hm, he's still asleep. Even those who have the potential tend to be unstable at first. Memory loss, disorientation, but Nagito here is rather unique, he hasn't had any of the common symptoms." Ikutsuki said.

"Should we monitor him some more?" Mitsuru asked.

"I don't like this, I feel like we're spying on him..." Yukari said.

"I understand your concern, but it's imperative that we find new recruits. I heard he's your classmate. Wouldn't you feel more comfortable working with someone from the same grade?" The bespectaled mab said.

The monitor started beeping all of a sudden. Mitsuru pressed a button on the control panel and spoke, "Command room. Is that you, Akihiko?"

"You won't believe it, this thing is huge! Unfortunately, I don't have time to talk, it's chasing me! I wanted to let you guys know I'm almost there!" A voice on the other end yelled.

"Does that mean he's bringing that thing here?!" Yukari asked in a panicked state. As soon as she that, the building started rumbling. "You gotta be kidding!" She yelled.

"Prepare for battle!" Mitsuru ordered.

The three ran down the arrived downstairs to see a guy sitting against the front door, clutching his abdomen. He had silver hair and grey eyes. He wore a red vest over a white long sleeved shirt, black trousers and black loafers.

"Akihiko!" Mitsuru yelled.

"I-I'm alright. Get ready to be surprised, it'll be here any second!" The boy name Akihiko said while smirking.

"This is no time to joke around!" The readhead said annoyed.

"It's one of THEM, Akihiko?" Ikutsuki asked.

"Yes, but not an ordinary one." Akihiko said.

The building started rumbling again.

"Mr. Chairman, return to the command room!"

"Right, be careful!" He obeyed and ran back up the stairs.

"Takeba, go wake Ishikawa up, then escape out the back!"

"W-What about you?" Yukari asked.

"We have no choice but to fight! Sorry, Akihiko, you brought it to us, so I'm afraid you have to fight." Mitsuru said.

"Like I had a choice! What are waiting for, Yukari?! Go!" Akihiko ordered.

"R-Right!" She complied then ran up the stairs

The rumbling startled Nagito so bad, it knocked him out of his bed.

"W-W-What the hell's going on?!" He asked panicked. He was startled again by someone banging on his door.

"It's me! I'm sorry, I'm coming in!" A voice said on the other side of the door. The door was then forced open to reveal Yukari in a panicked state. "There's no time to explain, you need to come with me right now!" She ordered.

"W-What's-" He was interrupted when Yukari grabbed his arm and started running downstairs while dragging him along.

Just as they arrived at the back door downstairs, Yukari's headset started beeping. "This is Yukari!" She answered.

"Takeba, be careful! There's more than one! The one we're fighting isn't the one Akihiko saw!" Mitsuru's voice on the other end said.

"W-What?!" Suddenly, something started to violently bang on the back door.

"L-Let's pull back!" She said. She grabbed Nagito's arm again and dragged him up the stairs to the roof.

"We should be safe up here." She said, wiping sweat from her forehead. Their relief was short lived when the building rumbled again. They turned around to see a bunch of black hands gripping the fence behind them. One of the hands was holding a blue mask with the number "I" on it. The creature climbed down and appeared before them. The creature was strange looking. It was just a mass of hands. A bunch of knives appeared in its hands. The creature then charged after the two.

"What is that thing?!" Nagito asked.

"Those creatures... we call them Shadows. I-I have to fight..." Yukari removed the gun from the holster on her leg. She didn't aim it at the Shadow, she put it to her head!

Nagito's eyes went wide. "W-What are you doing?!" Was she going to kill herself? She slowly and nervously pulling the trigger. Nagito was too frightened to stop her. Just as she was about to pull it, the Shadow launched a fire ball at her, sending her flying, skidding on the ground near the door.

"Yukari!" He yelled.

Nagito had to do something, but what could he do? He didn't have any weapons- "The gun!" Nagito noticed Yukari's gun lying under his feet. He picked it up and was about to aim it at the Shadow, but for some reason he found himself putting it to his head.

_What am I doing? _He thought. He wondered why he was putting it to his head, but something was telling him to put it to his head and pull the trigger. _I can't back out now. _He thought.

"Per...so...na!" He then pulled the trigger and was overcome with a warm energy. Something then appeared above him. It looked like a man with a mechanical body. It had a harp on its back and a speaker in its stomach. It had long white hair and red eyes.

"**Thou art I."**

"**And I am Thou."**

"**From the sea of thy soul I cometh."**

"**I am Orpheus, master strings." **The creature by the name of Orpheus said.

He could defeat the Shadow with this new power of his. Just he was about to order Orpheus to attack it, he started clutching his head in pain. Orpheus suddenly exploded to reveal a different creature. It wore a blue cloak and had a bunch of coffins chained together floating behind its back. It wore skull helmet and was carrying a katana shaped weapon. The creature jumped into the air and swung its sword at the Shadow, cutting some its hands off, it then grabbed it by another one of its hand and sliced it off, it then delivered a diagnal slash to its mask, slicing it in half. It then used some sort of hand sign. When ir was done casting, a dark purple circle appeared around its remains. The circle lit up instantly disentigrating the rest of the Shadow.

The cloaked creature disappeared into a blue light and Orpheus returned, fully intact.

"I-Is it over?" Yukari, who watched the whole thing, asked. Just as she asked that, two smaller Shadows wearing the same mask as the first one appeared, charging at the defenseless Yukari.

"G-Get away!" She screamed in terror.

_I gotta save her!_ He then ran over to the Shadows and ordered Orpheus to attack. His Persona crushed one of the Shadows with his harp, killing it instantly. He then played a song on his harp and burned the last one with fire, taking it out.

"Are you okay, Yukari?" Nagito asked her, dismissing Orpheus.

"Y-Yeah..." She answered.

"Awesome..." He said with a smile. His vision turned black, he collapsed.

"Hey! Are you okay?!" Yukari asked while panicking.

"Answer me!"

Chapter 3 end

**A/N: If you can guess which spell Thanatos used, you'll get twenty cyber cookies.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Before I start the chapter, let's do the disclaimer. Nagito, do you mind?**

**Nagito: Y-You want me to do it?**

**Me: If you don't mind.**

**Nagito: Okay, then. R-Rwanime442 does not own Persona 3, it's owned by A-Atlus. However he owns me, and because they helped develop me, Immortal Thunder owns me, too. W-Was that good enough?**

**Me: Yeah, thanks.**

Chapter 4

**Date unknown, time unknown- Velvet Room**

Nagito opened his eyes to find himself sitting in a chair. He checked his surroundings to see he was in a giant elevator. He also saw two people in front of him. There was no way he could have forgotten that nose or that strange blue outfit.

"Welcome back to the the Velvet Room, young man." Igor said with his usual creepy grin.

"W-Why am I here again? Nagito asked.

"You became unconcious after awakening to your power. It's nothing to worry about, though." The nose said.

"S-So, I'm not dead?" Nagito asked nervously.

Igor nodded. "That is correct. You very much alive. By the way...I see that it was Orpheus who heeded your calling. That power is called Persona, the power you used the other night." He said.

"Persona?" He asked. He did remember saying that, but he didn't know why.

"It is side of that shows when you face the world around. You can think of it as a mask, that surfaces as you react to external stimuli. However, your power is different. It's like the number 0, empty, but holding a mass amount of potential within itself."

"What does any of that even mean?" He asked.

"Now then, time marches on in your world. I shouldn't keep you here any longer. The next time we meet, you come here of your own accord. *Chuckle* I look forward to it. Until then, farewell."

"Hey wait, you never told me-" He was interrupted again when he was enveloped in a blinding light.

**April 16, after school, Tatsumi Memorial Hospital**

When the light faded, he found himself looking at a white ceiling.

"You're awake!" A familiar voice said. He turned his head to the left and saw Yukari sitting in chair beside him.

"Y-Yukari-chan...?"

"How are you feeling?" She asked with concern in her voice.

"W-Where am I...?" He asked groggily.

"Thank goodness!" She said with a relieved smile. "Oh, this is Tatsumi Memorial Hospital. The doctor couldn't find anything wrong with you, he said you were just exhausted. Geez, how much sleep do you need?! You know how worried I was?!"

Nagito was taken aback by what she said. She was worried about him? No one has ever shown any concern for him. "Y-You were worried about me?" He asked.

"Of course I was. I thought you were going to be unconcious forever, you jerk." She said.

"I-I'm sorry..." He said.

"Don't worry about. You're awake now and that's all that matters." She once again had a relieved smile on her face.

Her face then turned sad. "Besides, I'm the one who should apologize, not you."

"Why?" He asked.

"That night, I was supposed to protect you, but I panicked and was completely useless."

"Please, don't apologize Yukari-chan. You tried to protect me. No one's ever done that for me before." He said with a smile.

She started blushing. "H-Huh? T-Thanks..." She stammered. "A-Anyway, you're power, it was amazing."

"What were those things?" He asked.

"You mean those thing from the other night? We call them Shadows. And that power you used the other night, we call it Persona. We'll explain everything to you later."

"Alright."

"There's something I've been meaning to tell you." She said

"What is it?" He asked.

"I wanted to tell you, I'm sort of like you."

"What do you mean?"

"It was ten years ago. A big explosion happened in the area and a lot of people died. My dad died in the blast, but no one really knows the truth, and my mom and I aren't exactly on good terms. That's why I decided to enroll here and why this happened to you. Of course I panicked and wasn't much help. It was my first time fighting them, too. You're alone, right? To be honest, I already know about your past, but it didn't seem right, so I decided to you about mine."

"Your reason for coming here is the same as mine." Nagito said.

"That's why you cam here?" She asked.

"Yeah." He responded.

"Oh, I nearly forgot. Here." She dug into her skirt pocket and handed him a pair of glasses. His glasses to be precise. "Your glasses broke when you collapsed, so Mitsuru-senpai had them fixed.

"Thanks." He said, taking them and putting them on.

"Well, I have to go and everyone you're awake. I'll see you later. Bye." She said, walking out of the room.

Chapter 4 end

**I'm sorry I had to cut this chapter short, I just have other stuff I've got to do today. I'll try to make the next chapter longer.**

**Oh, and if this seems like this is a OcxYukari story, it's not. I'm still shipping Nagito with Mitsuru. However, Yukari will have a one-sided affection for him.**

**Next time, Nagito officialy joins SEES.**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**Before I start the story, let's have someone do the disclaimer. Let's see... Aigis, I choose you.**

**Aigis: You wish me to do the disclaimer?**

**Me: Yes, please.**

**Aigis: Understood. Rwanime442-san does not own Persona 3. Persona 3 is owned by Atlus. However, Nagito-san is owned by Rwanime442-san and co-owned by Immortal Thunder-san.**

**Early morning – April 17 – Gekkoukan High school gate**

The next day after waking up, Nagito was cleared to leave the hospital and go to school.

Just as he was about to walk through, he heard a familiar voice calling his name behind him. He turned around to see his cap wearing friend, Junpei.

"Yo, what's up?" Junpei greeted him with his trademark goofy grin.

"Hey, Junpei-kun." Nagito said with a smile of his own.

"You were out for a long time. Yuka-tan said you got sick. I was worried about you. Glad to see you're feeling better, buddy." Junpei said.

"Thank you." Nagito said, happy that Junpei called him buddy.

"Nagito-kun!" Another familiar voice called behind him. They both turned around to see Yukari.

"Hey, Yukari-chan." Nagito said.

"You look a lot better than you did yesterday." She said.

"Thanks." He responded.

"I'm sorry to spring this on you early in the morning, but the Chairman wants to speak with you. Come to the command room on the 4th floor when you get back, okay?"

"Alright." He replied.

"You two seem real friendly with each other." Junpei said.

"Just what are you implying?" Yukari said, giving Junpei a death glare.

"N-N-Nothing!" Junpei stammered.

"That's what I thought." She said.

The three then headed to their class.

Today, class was being taught by Mr. Ono. Nagito admitted this school had some... colorful staff. Mr. Ono was no exception. He was wearing a kabuto! The history teacher asked Junpei a question, and once again Nagito had to bail him out by telling him the answer. After he gave him the answer, he was surprised by some of the students complimenting him.

"Nagito sure is smart. Maybe I should ask him to help me study for exams." A male student said.

"Nagito gave Junpei the answer. He's so smart." A female student said, practically squealing.

"Yeah, and he's really cute, too." A female student beside him said.

That last comment made Nagito blush. _C-Cute? _He thought to himself.

After school, Nagito decided to get some takoyaki from the Octopia stand. The takoyaki tasted the same as it did ten years ago. The lady running it even remembered him.

It was evening when Nagito arrived at the dorm. There was no one in the lounge. He wondered where everyone was until he realized that everyone was waiting for him on the 4th floor.

**April 17 – evening - dorm**

He went to the 4th floor to see Yukari waiting for him. "Oh, you're here. Everyone's waiting." She said. They opened the doors to see Mitsuru, Ikutsuki, and an unfamiliar boy that Nagito assumed was Akihiko Sanada.

"Hello there. I'm relieved to see that you're out of the hospital." Ikutsuki said with a smile, which again made Nagito feel unnerved. "Please, sit down."

"O-Okay." Nagito replied, taking a seat next to Mitsuru. He then looked at the silver hair guy. "Are you that Akihiko Sanada guy Ikutsuki-san mentioned earlier?" He asked.

Akihiko nodded. "How ya doin?" He said with a friendly smile.

"Is alright if I asked you something?" The bespectacled man asked.

Nagito nodded.

"Would you believe me if I said a day contained more than 24 hours?" He asked.

"Yes. Yes I would." Nagito replied. "I've been aware of that hour since I was a little kid."

"We call it the Dark Hour. It's the hidden hour between one day and the next." Mitsuru explained.

"Hidden?" Nagito asked.

"It guess it's something people aren't aware of, but the Dark Hour does happen. It'll happen tonight, and every night to come." Ikutsuki said.

"Trust me, I've seen it every night for the last ten years. People turning into coffins, the power outages, that ugly green monn." He said with a frown. He didn't notice it, but Mitsuru was looking at him apologetically.

"Although I've been aware of it for a long time, it was my first time seeing those things." He said.

"Those creatures you saw, we call them Shadows. They appear during the Dark Hour and attack anyone who's not in a coffin. It's our job to defeat them. Sounds excting, huh?" Akihiko said with an excited smile.

"Akihiko! Why are you always like that?! You just got hurt the other day!" Mitsutu said, annoyed.

"Now, now. He does his job well." Ikutsuki said, trying to calm her down.

"Anyway, the Shadows are responisble for most of the recent incindents, if not all of them. The shadows feed on the minds of humans, the victim becomes a living corpse." She said.

"Are you talking about Apathy Syndrome?" Nagito asked.

"That's correct." She said.

"How do you fight them?" He asked.

"Although it's rare, some people awaken to a power that allows them to function during the Dark Hour, which is also the only power to combat the Shadows. It is called Persona, the power you used the other night. So it's all up to you guys." Ikutsuki said.

"I-I see..."

Mitsuru opened a briefcase on the table. It contained that gun-looking object and a red armband with the word SEES on it. "What he's saying is, he wants you join us. We had an Evoker made for you, we'd like you to lend us your strength."

"I-I don't know. I may have a Persona, but I don't know how use a weapon." Nagito said.

"You don't need to worry about that, Ishikawa. I can gladly teach you fencing." She reassured.

"U-Um..."

"Please, we need your strength." She begged. That took Nagito back. She said she needed him. No one has ever said they needed him.

"Leave the guy alone, Mitsuru. He doesn't have to join us if he doesn't want to." Akihiko said.

"I'll join you." Nagito said.

"Thank you. We really appreciate you joining, Ishikawa." Mitsuru said with a relieved smile.

"I thought you were going to say no. Welcome aboard!" Yukari said with a cheerful smile.

"Welcome to the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad." Ikutsuki also said with a smile.

"I'm looking forward to see what you're made of." Akihiko said.

As soon as Akihiko said that. Time froze.

"W-What's going on?"

He then heard a mysterious voice in his head.

**Thou art I**

**And I am thou**

**Thou hast established a new bond**

**Thou shall be blessed when creating Personas of the Fool Arcana**

Time then suddenly flowed again.

"I have one more thing for you." Mitsuru said. She took a small metal case out of her skirt pocket. He then handed them to Nagito.

He opened it to see a pair of contact lenses.

"Contact lenses?" He asked.

"Since wearing your glasses will hinder you in battle, I decided to get these lenses made for you."

"Thank you." He said.

_They actually need me. The whole town needs me._

"I swear I won't let any of down." He said with a newfound determination.

Chapter 5 end


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

**Alright, you know the drill. Let's have someone do the disclaimer. Let's see... Akihiko, I choose you.**

**Akihiko: If I do this, you'll give me more protein, right?**

**Me: Yeah, yeah, just do it already**

**Akihiko: Rwanime442 does not own Persona 3. The game as well as myself are owned by Atlus. The only thing he owns is Nagito, who also co-owned by Immortal Thunder**

**April 18 – morning - dorm**

Since today was Sunday, Nagito had a day off. However, he didn't have a free day. As he woke up, Mitsuru called him up to the command room for some fencing lessons.

For the last several hours, Mitsuru taught him the basics of fencing. She taught him basic thrusts, and a proper stance, and how to carry it properly. Having her touch his hands made him blush really hard.

**April 18 – afternoon – dorm**

"Alright. That's enough for today." Mitsuru said. "You learn quickly. It's only been a few hours but it seems you really have the hang of it."

"T-Thank you, senpai." Nagito said.

"I have something else I need to attend to. Get some rest, Ishikawa." She said, walking out of the command room."

"Before you go, I wanted to say thanks for teaching me. I feel a lot more confident in fighting the Shadows." He said with a smile.

"No, it was mearly your natural ability. You may not think it, but I think you're capable of many talents." She said with a smile of her own, which made Nagito blush again.

"T-Thank you..." He stammered.

Suddenly, the same phenomenon happened again, like it did last night. Time suddenly froze.

**Thou art I**

**And I am Thou**

**Thou hast established a new bond**

**Thou shall be blessed when creating Personas of the Empress arcana**

Then time resumed. Nagito was wondering what was happening. Perhaps it had something to do with his Persona ability. The next time he saw Igor, he would have to ask him about it.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Ishikawa." She said, exiting the command room.

After his lessons, Nagito returned to his room to rest for the day. After a few moments he fell asleep.

A couple of hours later, Nagito was woken up by the sound of someone knocking on his door. "Hey, it's Yukari. I'm really sorry to bother you, but could you come down to the lounge? Akihiko-senpai needs us for something."

"Alright, I'm coming." He said, opening the door and going down stairs with Yukari. The two went downstairs to see Akihiko standing in front of the door.

"Is something wrong, Akihiko-san?" Nagito asked.

"I wanted to introduce you guys to someone. Hey, hurry up." He said.

"Hold your horses. This is freakin' heavy!" A voice said from behind the door. Nagito thought that voice sounded very familiar.''

The door opened to reveal Junpei with all of his bags. "What's up?" He greeted the surprised faces of Nagito and Yukari with his goofy grin.

"What?! Junpei?! He's staying here?! Really? Wait, don't tell me..." Yukari trailed off.

"This is Junpei Iori, a junior who goes to our school. As of today he's staying here from now on. He has the potential, but he just awakened to it recently."

"You have the potential?! For real?!" Yukari said, still surprised.

"He found me crying like a baby, standing near a bunch of coffins. I don't remember much, but man, how embarassing. But he said that's normal in the beginning. Like being confused, not remembering what happened. Did that happen to you guys" Junpei said, still plastering his goofy grin.

"I've been aware of the Dark Hour for as long as I can remember." Nagito said sadly.

"Really? Damn that musta been rough. But you're a Persona-user now. You don't have to be afraid of that hour anymore." He then wrapped an arm around his neck. "Besides, your good buddy Junpei is here to back you up!" He said.

"Thanks, Junpei." He said while smiling. He felt that Junpei was a real friend to him, so their was no need to call him -kun. Junpei must feel the same way about him, because he doesn't use any honorifics when speaking to him.

"I bet you're stoked having me join!" The cap wearing goof said.

"I-I guess..." Yukari said.

"Well, that's enough with the introductions. Now we can finally start exploring that place." Akihiko said with a smirk.

"Huh, are gonna do something?" Junpei asked excitedly.

"You mean Tartarus?" Yukari asked.

Nagito and Junpei both had confused looks on their faces. "Tartarus? What's that? Sounds like toothpaste." Junpei asked.

"You're gonna find out tomorrow." Akihiko said, still smirking, walking back upstairs, leaving the two boys still confused.

Chapter 6 end

**Next time will be the gang's first exploration of Tartarus. Look forward to it.**

**Social Link progress:**

**Fool: SEES (1/10)**

**Empress: Mitsuru Kirijo (1/10)**

**Personas:**

**Orpheus**

**arcana: Fool**

**skills: Agi, Bash, Gurentou, Tarunda**

**Thanatos**

**arcana: Death**

**skills: Tempest Slash, Vorpal Blade, Mamudoon, Megidola**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

**Before I start, let's do the disclaimer. I'd like you to do it, Shinji.**

**Shinjiro: Why the hell do you want me to do it?**

**Me: Please?**

**Shinjiro: No way.**

**Me: If you don't do it, I'll tell those guys that hang around Port Island Station that you like to cook. The moment they see you, you'll be laughed right out of there.**

**Shinjiro: (face palms) Alright, I'll do it. (sigh) Rwanime442 does not own Persona 3. It as well as me are owned by Atlus. But He owns Nagito, who's also co-owned by Immortal Thunder. There, you happy?**

**Me: Quite**

**April 19 – early morning – Gekkoukan High room 2-F**

Nagito, Yukari, and Junpei were in their seats talking with each other waiting for class to start when Mitsuru came in.

"Good morning, senpai." Nagito greeted, giving her friendly smile, trying not to be nervous around her.

"Good morning to you as well." Mitsuru greeted back. "I'd like all of you to come to the command room on 4th floor when you get back." She said.

"Oh, are we having that talk?" Junpei asked with his trademark grin.

"I'll leave the details for later." She simply said, walking out of the classroom.

"Damn, she didn't waste any time leaving." Junpei said.

"She's probaly busy with student council, unlike us." Yukari said with a frown.

"Ohhh! Yuka-tan, do I sense some hostility?" Junpei asked in a childish tone.

"Do you not like, Mitsuru-senpai, Yukari-chan?" Nagito asked.

"It's not that I don't like her, it just..." Yukari trailed off, leaving the two confused.

"Well, you may not like her, Yuka-tan, but I know someone who does." Junpei said, looking at Nagito.

"W-Wait a second, I d-don't like her!" Nagito said defensively, his face burning red.

"Well your face says otherwise." Junpei chuckled.

"Stop teasing him, Junpei!" Yukari scolded.

"Alright, alright." Junpei said, still chuckling.

**April 19, morning, Gekkoukan High class 2-F**

Today, class was being taught by Mr. Ekoda, the classic literature teacher. He was supposed to be teaching the class, but pretty much all he did was bitch and moan over and over about people not thinking classic lit is relevant.

**April 19, after school, Wild Duck Burger**

Since Nagito had some time left, he decided to grab a bite at the Wild Duck Burger. They had a new item called the Mystery Burger. Nagito had decided to try it. The fries sucked like they always did. After eating the crappy fries, he decided to eat the Mystery Burger. He was a little scared to eat something when he didn't know what it was, but he closed his eyes and took a bite. It wasn't dangerous like he thought might have been. In fact, it was pretty good.

**April 19, evening, dorm**

After arriving back at the dorm, he immediately proceeded to the command room.

"I didn't arrive too late, did I?" Nagito asked, taking a seat next to Junpei.

"No, it's fine. We weren't waiting too long." Ikutsuki reassured. He then cleared it's throat. For a time, Mitsuru and Akihiko were the only Persona-users we had here, but that number recently jumped to five.

So, tonight, starting at 12:00, I would like to commence the exploration of Tatarus."

"Sorry, but I asked this yesterday. What exactly is this Tatarus thing?" Junpei asked.

Yeah, I would like to know, too." Nagito said. The only thing he knew about Tatarus, was that is was some massive tower in Greek mythology.

"You guys haven't seen it?" Yukari asked, leaving both of them confused.

"That's no surprise, since it only appears during the Dark Hour." The bespectacled man explained.

"The Dark Hour, huh..." Junpei said.

"Just like the Shadows. Interesting, and it's the perfect place to train. You can think of it as a shadow nest." Akihiko said with his battle ready smirk.

"Whoah, their nest, huh?" Junpei said.

"Akihiko, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but you won't be exploring with us today." Mitsuru said.

"Yeah, I know..." Akihiko said in disappointment.

"Before we start, I'd like you to come over here." Mitsuru ordered and everyone followed her to a door by one of the bookcases. She took out a key and opened it. There were a bunch of weapons inside.

"When you're fighting Shadows, using your Personas too often will exhaust you. It is imperative that you have a weapon with you. Choose well, Iori." She said.

"Huh? What about the others?" Junpei asked surprised.

"Since I'm in the archery club, I've already got my weapon." Yukari said.

"These are my weapons." Akihiko said, holding out his fists.

"What about Nagito." The cap wearing goof asked.

"I already have a weapon prepared for him." Mitsuru said, handing him a rapier.

"This is the rapier I used when I first started fighting Shadows. I'd like you to hold on to it from now on." She said.

"Thanks, senpai." He said.

"Sweet! Then I know what I want!" Junpei said excitedly, as he pulled out a katana that was as long as him.

"Very well then, let's go." Mitsuru ordered. "Mr. Chairman, are you going to stay here?" She asked

"Yeah, I'm going to stay here. As you know, I can't summon a Persona." He said with a frown.

_He can't summon a Persona? Then how come he can function during the Dark Hour. I'll have to ask him about that later. _Nagito thought to himself.

**April 19, evening, Gekkoukan High school gate**

The group arrived at the school gate. Why were they there?

"This is the place? Why here?" Junpei asked with disbelief.''

"Just wait a moment, it's almost midnight." Akihiko said, checking his watch. As soon as he said that, the Dark Hour commenced.

All of the sudden, the school started to change shape. It kept rising and morphing until it was an ugly, massive tower. Both Nagito and Junpei watched in both horror and amazement at the transformation.

"This is Tartarus. The labrynth that exists between one day and the next." Mitsuru said, completely unfazed.

"Labrynth? What the hell are you talking about?! What happened to our school?!" Junpei asked, completely shocked.

"I-It'll go back to normal, right?" Nagito was also shocked.

Mitsuru nodded at his question. "Once the Dark Hour passes, everything returns to normal." She said.

"But, why? Why did our school turn into a giant tower?" Junpei asked.

Nagito immediately noticed Mitsuru's expression change. It looked like she had a guilty expression.

"You don't know?" Junpei asked.

"No..." She simply said. Nagito could tell by her tone that she was lying.

"I'm sure it's complicated. Even if she did know, it wouldn't help us." Yukari said.

**April 19, Dark Hour – Tartarus lobby**

"It's just as cool on the inside." Junpei said with wonder.

"But it sure is creepy." Yukari said.

"The entrance to the labyrnth is at the top of these stairs." Mitsuru said.

"Mitsuru and I have only came in here to take a peep. This will be our first time exploring it. There has to be way to get rid of the Dark Hour in there." Akihiko said with his usual smirk.

"I'm sorry, Akihiko, but you can't go with them." Mitsuru said.

"I know, you don't have to remind me!" He said annoyed.

"You three will go inside to get some battle experience." She said.

"You want us to go in there by ourselves?!" Yukari asked horrified.

"We're not asking you to go very far. And I'll be providing audio backup from here." She said, handing each of three a headset.

"We'll also be appointing a leader to make the necessary decisions." Akihiko said.

A gleam suddenly appeared in Junpei's eyes. "For real? One of us? Oh, me, me, me, me, me, me, pick me!" He said with enthusiasm.

"Nagito, you're in charge." Akihiko said, surprising them both.

"Wait why him?! He doesn't look like a leader! Besides, he freaks out over every little thing!" Junpei protested.

"But he HAS fought them before." Yukari said.

"Yeah, and even though he is normally shy, he defeated them without hesitation." Mitsuru said, coming to his defense.

"A-Alright, I'll do my best." Nagito said.

"Alright, let's go beat some baddies!" Junpei said, turning around from annoyed to enthusiastic.

The other two nodded. Just as Nagito was about to head upstairs, he saw door appear by the lobby entrance. When he noticed the Velvet Key in his pocket glow, he knew what it was.

He walked over to the door and opened it. Just as he thought. It was a door to the Velvet Room.

"I've been expecting you." Igor greeted. "The time has come for you to wield your power. The tower that you are about to venture into... How did come to be? What purpose does it exist? Regrettably, you are unable to answers such questions at the moment. Now that you have returned, I will explain what my true purpose is. You have the power to wield multiple Personas, and to use them accordingly. My duty is to create new Personas by fusing them together. When you defeat an enemy, the seeds of possibility will appear before you as cards. At times, they may be difficult to grasp, but do not fear, seize what you have earned. If you obtain any, do not hesitate to bring them here. The stronger your Social Links are the more powerful they will be."

"What's a Social Link?" Nagito asked.

"Surely, you must know by now. Social Links are the bonds you form with others. They will also greatly help you when the time comes. The more Social Links you have, the stronger your Persona ability will be. Please, do not forget this." Igor said.

"I wont." Nagito replied.

"Good. Now then, I hope to see you again. Farewell." His vision blurred. When it returned, he was standing in front of the door in the lobby.

"Hey, you okay?" Yukari asked.

"H-Huh? Y-Yeah..." He responded.

"You were just standing there. You looked like zombie." Junpei said. _I guess I'm the only one who can see it. _Nagito thought to himself.

"Sorry..." Nagito said.

"You're like that little league coach who fell asleep during the playoffs. You're supposed to be our leader." Junpei said.

"Hey, cut him some slack. If nothing's wrong, let's go." Yukari said.

The three then proceeded up the stairs into the labrynth.

"_Can you all hear me?" _Mitsuru's voice on the headset asked.

"Yeah, loud and clear." Nagito replied.

"_I'll be providing backup from here on out." _She said.

"How? Can you see inside here or something?" Junpei asked.

"_It's my Persona's ability. The layout of the labrynth changes from day to day. That's why outside support is imperative."_

"Well that makes me feel a whole lot better." Yukari said sarcastically.

"_Expect to counter enemies at any moment. They shouldn't be too tough for you, but proceed with caution." _She ordered.

"Right!" Junpei replied with a grin.

"Right." Yukari replied as well. "Why is she always like that?"

_I can tell she doesn't like Mitsuru-senpai. I wonder why. _Nagito thought to himself.

While the three were running through the labrynth, they ran into three Shadows. They looked like slimes and they had blue masks with the roman numeral "I" on them. Nagito recognized these Shadows, they were the same ones that attacked the dorm the other night.

"I got this! Hermes!" Junpei yelled, putting his Evoker to his head and pulling trigger. His Persona appeared before him. He was a masked warrior with bladed wings. Nagito thought his Persona looked pretty cool.

"Go get em'!" He ordered. Hermes flew at the shadows and sliced them in half with his bladed wings. He didn't get them all, though. One of them dodged and used its slimy fingers to scratch Junpei, sending him skidding back.

"Junpei! You alright?!" Nagito asked concerned.

"Yeah, don't worry about me! You're gonna pay that, bastard!" Junpei unsheathed the katana on his back and charged at the Shadow. With great power, he sliced the Shadow clean in half.

"Yeah, take that you SOB!" Junpei said victoriously. His victory was short lived as three more Shadows appeared. They looked like crowns with tentacles, and they were heading straight towards Yukari. "Stay away, you creeps!" Yukari aimed her bow at the oncoming Shadows. She shot an arrow at one of them, piercing its mask and it dissipated. The other two aimed their sharp tentacles at her, charging at her. "Kya!"

"Yukari-chan!" Nagito pushed her out of the way, and the Shadows's tentactles stabbed into his stomach.

"No! Nagito-kun!" Yukari loaded two arrows into her bow and killed the other two Shadows.

Nagito fell to the ground, clutching his bleeding stomach.

"Hey! You alright, man?!" Junpei asked, panicked.

"I-I'm alright..." Nagito said.

"No, you're not! Let me help you! Io!" Yukari put the Evoker to her head and pulled trigger. Her persona appeared before her. It looked like woman with her feet chained down to something. "Please, heal him!" She ordered. A green light enveloped him and Nagito felt his pain disappearing and his wound healing.

"Thanks, Yukari-chan." He said with a grateful smile.

"Now, we're even." Yukari said with a smile of her own.

Three more Shadows appeared. They looked identical to the blobs they fought earlier except they wore red masks with the Roman numeral "VI" engraved on them. They were headed towards Nagito. "Orpheus!" He summoned his Persona. "Agi!" He ordered. He played a melody on his harp, launching a fire ball at two of them, burning them to ashes. The third one tried scratching at him, but he rolled out of the way. He charged at the Shadow with rapier and stabbed it into its masks, killing it.

After killing the Shadows, a bunch of cards appeared in Nagito's face. One of the cards had a picture with a woman on it. She had blue skin and was wearing a dancing suit. He chose that card and obtained a new Persona.

"_I don't detect any more Shadows. There's an access point just around the corner. You can use it to return to the lobby." _Mitsuru said on the headset.

The group found the access point and returned to the lobby.

"Welcome back. So how was it?" Mitsuru said.

"This gonna take some time to get used to." Nagito said.

"That may be so, but you did great." She said, which made Nagito blush.

"That was awesome! I never knew I had that kind of power. We kicked some ass! But damn, I'm beat." Junpei said.

"That's because you were bouncing around like a little kid." Yukari deadpanned.

"You look pretty tired yourself, Yuka-tan." He responded.

"That's effect of the Dark Hour. You'll become fatigued more easily. Don't worry though, you'll adapt. You three performed better than I expected. At this rate, they'll catch up to you in no time, Akihiko." Mitsuru said.

"Heh, we'll see about that." Akihiko said with an amused smile.

"Alright, let's return to the dorm." Mitsuru ordered.

Suddenly, time froze.

**Thou art I**

**And I am thou**

**Thou hast strengthed thy bond**

**Thou shall be blessed when creating Personas of the Fool arcana.**

Time then flowed to normal.

The group then exited Tartarus and returned to the dorm

Chapter 7 end

**Social Links:**

**Fool: SEES (2/10)**

**Empress: Mitsuru Kirijo (1/10)**

**Personas:**

**Orpheus**

**arcana: fool**

**skills: Agi, Bash, Gurentou, Tarunda**

**(NEW!) Apsaras**

**arcana: priestess**

**skills: Bufu, Rakunda, Posumudi**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

**Since no one else is here to the disclaimer, I'll do it. I don't own Persona 3 or the characters in it. They are owned by Atlus. However, I do own Nagito who is also co-owned by Immortal Thunder.**

**April 20 – morning – Gekkoukan High**

Today was a normal school day like any other. Class was being taught be Ms. Ounishi, the science teacher. Nagito was surprised to have a normal teacher teaching the class for once.

**April 20 – lunctime- Gekkoukan High**

Nagito was eating lunch by himself in his classroom. After being with relatives that never cared about him he had learned to fend for himself, so he cooked his own food and packed his lunches. There was a lot of things he wasn't confident in, but his cooking was one thing he was confident in. The problem was, he made too much for a single person to eat. He wanted eat with Mitsuru, be he couldn't find her. Yukari and Junpei were eating somewhere else, too. "Hey! It's Nagito-kun!" A girl from the open classroom door yelled. "It really is Nagito-kun! Another girl said." When I mean said, I really meant squealing. A few other girls were squealing as well.

Nagito felt he was in danger, so he opened the other door in the room and ran for his life with the fangirls chasing him. _I always wanted to be popular, but never THIS popular! _Nagito thought to himself.

Nagito had managed to give them slip by hiding in the gym. "Huff, huff, huff..." He panted, relieved to get away from those crazed fangirls. "You alright?" A female voice asked from behind him. He turned around to see a girl. Like Nagito, she had long black hair tied in a ponytail. She also had black eyes. Instead of a blazer, she was wearing a sweater vest.

"Y-Yeah... I was running away from those fangirls." He said.

"Sorry about that. There's a lot of girls like that here." She said. "You're Nagito-kun, right?

"Yeah, you know me?" He asked.

"The whole school knows about." She said. "I'm Rio Iwasaki, captain of the tennis team, nice to meet you." She greeted, extending a hand to Nagito.

"You already know my name, but I'm Nagito Ishikawa, nice to meet you, too." He replied, shaking her hand.

Then, time suddenly froze.

**Thou art I**

**And I am thou**

**Thou hast established a new bond**

**Thou shall be blessed when creating Personas of the Chariot arcana**

Time then returned to normal.

"What are you doing here, though? Club activities don't happen until after school." He said.

"I always eat here. Every girl in my class keeps talking about boys and dating." I come here to eat my lunch in peace." Rio said.

"Oh, okay." He replied.

"Would be interested in joining the tennis team? New members can join on the 23rd."

"Isn't the tennis team a girls-only team?" He asked.

"Well, it isn't a girls-only team, it's just only girls that have ever joined." Rio said.

"I'll put in it into consideration." He said. He said goodbye to Rio and returned to his classroom to eat the rest of his lunch before lunch ended.

**April 20 – after school**

Nagito and Junpei were leaving together to go to the arcade when they heard a girl squeal.

"Look!"

_Oh no! Not again! _Nagito shuddered in fear.

"It's Akihiko-Senpai!"

They turned around to the front of the building to see Akihiko surrounded by fangirls. They weren't the same fangirls that chased him earlier. Nagito immediately felt relief wash over him.

"Have you ever noticed how much girls flock around Akihiko-san? I never really talked to him much, but now I have a good excuse." Junpei said with his usual grin. "I know he's the captain of the boxing team, but I never thought he would be such a chick magnet. I mean, you don't even see girls flock like that on TV."

Akihiko noticed the two past the girls surrounding him. "Hey, are you two busy?" He asked them.

"Not at all! What'cha got in mind?" Junpei asked excitedly.

"I'd like you two meet me at Paulownia Mall. You know where that's at, right? I'll be at the police station."

"The police station? You when we're not hanging out with your friends?" Junpei asked disappointingly.

"Who, these girls?" Akihiko raised his eyebrow. "I don't even know their names. They talk so much they give me headache." After saying that, he walked away. The fangirls sighed in disappointment.

"How could he not know their names? Seriously, just look at them!" He said exasperated.

Nagito didn't tell Junpei about what happened to him earlier because he didn't want him to be jealous of him.

"Oh, well, let's go." He said, his face immediately turning back into a grin.

**April 20 – after school – Paulownia Mall, police station**

Nagito and Junpei entered the police station to see Akihiko talking to a police officer behind the desk.

He noticed the two walking in. "Hey there, guys. Good timing. These are the guys I was telling you about." He said to the officer.

The officer was giving them both a calculating look.

"This is Officer Kurosawa, he keeps our squad well equipped. He's been helping us out for a while now, but he always requires a fee for his weapons." He said.

"Of course they do, nothing in life is free." Kurosawa said.

"I realize that." Akihiko replied. He turned around to face the two. "This is from Ikutsuki-san." He said, handing each of them 5,000 yen. "Pick out something you like. I'll see you later." He said, leaving the police station.

"I've been informed of you two. My job is to protect this city at all costs. I'm just an ordinary police officer, but it doesn't take a genius to know that something strange is going on around here. I'm only doing what I think is right." Kurosawa said.

"I don't mean to be rude, Officer, but won't you get a lot of trouble if you get caught selling weapons to teenagers?" Nagito asked them.

"Yes, that's true, but I know you kids aren't ordinary. Like I said before, I'm doing what I can to protect the peace. I don't care what risks I have to take." He replied. After hearing him say that, Nagito thought he was the coolest cop he ever met.

Nagito had decided to a purchase a knifeproot coat. It was the most expensive piece of equipment he currently had, but after he was impaled by bladed tentacles last night, he wanted protection from that happening again.

Junpei didn't buy anything. "Psh, 5,000 yen. I'm in a bad mood now. Let's go to the arcade some other time." He said.

"That's fine." Nagito said as he watched Junpei walk out of the station. Since he had some money left over, he went to the arcade on his own. He was surprised of the variety of arcade games they had. They had Mortal Kombat, Tekken, Marvel vs. Capcom, BlazBlue, and a bunch of other stuff.

**April 20 – evening - dorm**

"Welcome back." Mitsuru greeted.

"Hello, senpai." Nagito greeted back.

"I was told that you were looking for me at school today."

"H-Huh? Y-Yeah, I was..." Nagito replied nervously.

"Was there something important you needed to tell me?" She asked.

"N-No, it wasn't really important or anything, it's just that, I-I wanted to ask if you would each lunch for me, I had made a bento for both us." He replied.

"You wanted to have lunch with me? That was very kind of you to want to do that, but I already had a lunch prepared for me." She answered. "You could have asked Iori or Takeba to eat with you."

"I-I know, I just thought since you're always so busy with student council, you don't have time to eat, so I wanted to make something for, if not, I could help you in some other way. W-We are friends, aren't we?"

Mitsuru was taken aback by the word "friend". "I-Ishikawa..." She said shocked. Her face then formed into a genuine smile. "Yes, of course we are. I'm also very thankful that you tried to make me something. I'm grateful, Ishikawa."

Nagito's face started burning red. "Uh, n-no problem, s-senpai..." He stammered.

Time then froze.

**Thou art I**

**And I am thou**

**Thout has strengthened thy bonds**

**Thou shall be blessed when creating Personas of the Empress arcana.**

Time then resumed.

"I-I'm going back to my room to watch TV, I'll see you later, senpai." He then walked upstairs to his room.

_I can't believe Ishikawa wanted to have lunch with me, of all people. Maybe I should take the time to have lunch with him sometime. _Mitsuru thought to herself.

Chapter 8 end

**A/N: I know that Rio doesn't appear in the male side of P3, but I like her way better than Kazushi.**

**Social Links:**

**Fool: SEES (2/10)**

**Empress: Mitsuru Kirijo (2/10)**

**Chariot: Rio Iwasaki (1/10)**

**Personas:**

**Orpheus**

**arcana: Fool**

**skills: Bash, Agi, Gurentou, Tarunda**

**Apsaras**

**arcana: Priestess**

**skills: Bufu, Rakunda, Posumudi**

**Thanatos**

**arcana: Death**

**skills: Tempest Slash, Vorpal Blade, Mamudoon, Megidola**


End file.
